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Sprocket Pillows Tutorial

March 28, 2011

These are my favorite new pillows. They are fast and unbelievably easy to make…and I hope you love them as much as I do. I did my best to simplify the instructions/pattern so they are beginner friendly, and super fun to make. If you’ve never worked with a template or curves, and your nervous about it…these pillows are a perfect place to start. The only problem with them is that you can’t make just one…trust me …I tried.

There are pattern templates for two sizes:

Click the link below to download the pattern templates

*For best results, print the templates directly from google docs (click file on the left and print). If you are using explorer or firefox….make sure you hit “fit to printable area”, or “print actual size” in the printer preferences.

** Please do not re-post the link to these templates on your own website! Thank you!

Large fabric scraps for the top wedges, a 5″ x width of fabric strip for the middle (plus a little extra for the large size), a fat quarter for the back, a bag of poly-fill stuffing, and a button and thread for the center.

Let’s get started!!!!

1. Cut out the template for the size pillow that you are making. Using the template cut out 12 wedges.

2. Arrange the wedges how you like them. Sew the wedges into pairs, right sides together. Sew from the tip to the end. Use a 1/4″ seam allowance while constructing the pillow top.

3. Press and arrange the pairs. Sew the pairs into two halves.

4. Pin the edges and center seams of the halves together. Sew the halves together, slightly pulling or easing the fabric as necessary to get the edges and center to match. Don’t worry if your center seams don’t match perfectly…that’s what the button is for. Press well.

5. Make the pillow back by folding the backing fat quarter, and the circle top in half. Line up the folds, trace, and cut out the back.

6. Cut the strip for the pillow center. The strip sizes are:

Large Pillow: 5″ x 50″ strip

Small Pillow: 5″ x 43 1/2″ strip

Sew the ends of the strip right sides together using a 1/2″ seam allowance and press. You’ll use a 1/2″ seam allowance from here on out.

7. Pin one edge of the strip to the edges of the pillow top. Start anywhere and work your way around, easing or slightly stretching as necessary. If you have too much excess, pin all the way around except for the last 6” or so and pinch the extra together and sew it together. If you don’t have enough strip and you can’t slightly stretch it larger…you can either cut and sew another small strip on, or pin the strip 1/8″ or so in from the pillow top edge.

Remember that you can’t use too many pins!

8. Sew along the edge using a 1/2″ seam allowance.

9. Now pin the other edge of the middle strip to the backing, right sides together. Do it the same way you did the front.

10. Again, sew along the edge using a 1/2″ seam allowance…but this time leave a 4″ hole for turning and stuffing.

11. Turn the pillow right side out and stuff with your poly-fill. I like my pillow to look full but still be really cushy…that way when you add the button it sinks right in.

12. Sew up the hole either by hand or machine.

13. Get your button, needle and thread ready. If you want to make a fabric covered button like I did…you can buy kits at any fabric/craft store….they are super simple and take about 10 seconds. I recommend using thick thread like embroidery thread to add the button….but I didn’t have any for the tutorial so just ignore the thread I’m using in the photos.

Knot the end of your thread and put the needle through the center back of your pillow and push it to the front center.

Loop the thread/needle through your button a few times and put the needle back through the front to the back.

Pull the thread until the button is depressed in the front enough for your liking, and knot the thread in the back of the pillow. You can cover the back knot with another button…or just leave it.

And there you go. Aren’t they fun???!!!! Now you can make more in no time!

Hi there, just wondering how you made the template? Im finding it difficult to create my own since its a curved piece? not sure how to go about doing it. Its for a class project. Any help would be very appreciated Thank you.

Thank you! I am making one right now! I am finding that if you cut a layer cake square in half, you can get two large template wedges out of one half, and then use the other half (5 x 10 inches) to piece together to make the edge strip. So out of 6 layer cake squares and then a piece of fabric for the back, you can make a large pillow, or a large AND a small pillow if you use a different fabric for the sides!

Wow these look great! So many things on my list to finish or start, but I may just put them all on hold to make one of these! Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful ideas with us. You really do give out such wonderful information and want you to know that I very much appreciate it. Jodie

And a big fat thank you to you, Allison! What a great tutorial…easy with pictures…my kind!! Your blog is charming and I love visiting it…such eye candy! Have a great "time-off"…looking forward to your return.

love love love these pillows! thanks so much for the template and the tutorial. If I weren't going to do a sew day with my friend (we're doing a quilt along of the Single Girl Quilt), I'd be making this pillow!

hi! i've never commented on your blog before, but i have been following you for awhile and have to tell you that you have inspired me so much! i've recently started my own blog, where i have list YOU as one of my favorites! so on this little break of yours come visit me at http://www.mamaneedstowashherhair.com :)

Love you, Allison! I've been casting around trying to find this pattern ever since I saw your pillow like this a few months ago. I can't wait to start cranking them out. I hope you have a relaxing and enjoyable break.

oh man! i wasn't supposed to want to sew anything this week while i get ready for my nieces and nephew to visit. guess i better clean up quick so i have some time to make a few hundred of these! thanks for sharing :)

bless your sweet heart for being so generous. I clicked on a link to your blog today from littlebiggirlstudio and the page loaded up with those awesome pillows! I love them! the fabric you used is just perfect. You made them look super easy in your tutorial. I have never done curves before, but I just may give it a try.

oh. gosh. i love these pillows. and i sure need something new and cute in my family room now that spring & summer are heading our way. this is a new item on my 'to make' list! thanks so much!! you're the best :-)

I love these pillows and I love you! I subscribe to a bazillion blogs but I always have to read yours. You have brilliant skills and ideas but also I love that you don't update your blog every day. As a fellow blogger I honestly can't believe how other bloggers don't get overwhelmed with everything and still post awesome things every day. Good luck with all your tasks at hand!

These are so cute. I gave my daughter a sewing machine for Christmas in 2009 and she's sewing up a storm. She's looking for a new townhouse right now and I can see us sewing up a boatload of these for her new place! Thank you so much

These pillows are SEW cute I can barely stand it! I'm getting my Bernina next weekend! Can't WAIT to learn to SEW!Love your blog!Thank you for all that you share!I tweeted about this tutorial!Do you tweet?xo

Wow this is a fantastic tutorial, love it! I have so many fabric scraps left over from my work that it would be a perfect way to use them up…. will give it a go and link back to you when I do! This is the first time I've been to your blog, it is lovely :) Have a lovely weekend, Jenny x

I found these over at agaagg… I hope they're half as easy as you make them look, because if I can do it properly these would be perfect for using up a bunch of fabric scraps I have collected over the years! Thank you so much for sharing!

thank you so much for sharing these amazing cushions,they are so sweet done in that fabric I hope you do not take offence but I am going to make the large on for a dog bed well I will give it a whril ttfn Nicole

Just wanted to say thank you, Allison. I made one of these for my sister last month (finally just got around to blogging it) and am so jealous. I can't wait to make one for myself. Thanks for your generosity!

Ryan sent me!!…your pillows are stuffed more than his…but they are all wonderful. Just finishing up a quilt for my great-nephew and will make one out of the scraps (John Deere fabrics) should be a fun pillow for him.Will be following your blog now that I know about it.

Those are great! I esp. love your fabric choice.I made something similiar from my scraps last weekend. See pics on my blog, I linked to your tutorial for anyone who might be interested. I hope that's ok. I love all of your designs btw. you truly have a hand for chosing the fabric.loveUli from Germany

I just wanted to say thanks for the awesome tute. I have just made my first sprocket pillow and it turned out fabulously – thanks to your easy instructions and printable pattern. I will be writing a blog post with a link to you.

I just love this cushion and I had to whip up a couple. They look sensational. Your tut is great. & sorry im not that neat. I just threw it together.. You can link off to my blog and see how mine turned out. Thanks again from down under. kath

Hi there, these pillows are gorgeous. Thank you so much for the tutorial. As a way of a thank you, if you are still in need of fabric for your humanitarian quilts then please let me know as I have a large fabric stash and I would happily send you some.Lisa Margreet

So nice to see a pillow named after me. If I ever get any spare time from crime blogging to get back to sewing, I might try making one of these. You did an excellent job of presenting the steps on how to make this pillow.

Hello. I landed here through a friend of mine and I was so inspired by these pillows that I HAD to make them. The tutorial was so easy (very well explained)to follow and I am happy with the outcome. I make quilts myself (well, used to.. now I have moved onto a different "addiction") Your quilts are all so beautiful and I love coming here to look at all the pretty fabrics and what you make with them.Thank you for sharing and thank you for inspiration!I featured your blog on mine.

Thank you for the wonderful pattern and tutorial. I am a beginner, and I am constantly feeling overwhelming by blogs and tutorials. Yours was easy to follow — and it was my first successful sewing project! Thanks again.

I think these are great! I'm very new to quilting, sewing and of course pillows. I have made pillows with the embroidery blocks but never pieced pillow's. You're tutorial makes it very easy to follow!!!!

Thanks so much for this wonderful tutorial – I've never tried pillows like this before and it was so straightforward! I'm going to make a heap of them :-)I had just finished a baby room collection with a quilt and bunting and now I have a lovely pillow in matching fabric!Wonderful stuff, thank you for sharing. ais x

Wow! Brilliant tutorial. I have been looking at heaps of other tutorials similar to this and they are all a bit complicated. Thank you for the simplified instructions.

I would like to make a few of these but much bigger, to use as floor cushions. I am a newbie sewer and have know clue how to enlarge this pattern to make it bigger. Any help or suggestions appreciated!

Thank you for posting this tutorial. I love the pattern. I have made two thus far. My points aren't meeting up exactly but with a button in the middle or an appliqued heart like I did the last one, a person would never know. I just sent the link to a friend who loved it and wants to makes these for charity. God bless you. I enjoy your sight.

Thanks for a great tutorial! I made one last night for a swap (I have to run out for a covered button.) FYI, I quilted the top, only stitching out 1/4" from the the seams on all sides, and I really like the way that looks and feels (I always put a layer of batting close to the outside fabric so it's nice and smooth with stuffing. :) Thanks again!

wow what a great tutorial and idea! thank you =)i see that you used a machine, how long did it take for you to finish a pillow? and would it be possible to use silk or satin like fabric to create this pillow?

this tute is really lovely and the results are gr8 even to me, that i'm just a beginner. u really rule!do u mind if i give u a little 'trick' i used:quen you put on the butto, and u pass the thread from the top to the bottom, it' is very useful to pass another small transparent or matching button, to prevent the thread to break the fabric because of the pressure.it's just a little trick, but might make ur pillows last longer ! :)

How awesome, just back to sewing after quite some time, so the middle is not looking so great, but with a button I'm sure it will be fine. practised on really old scraps so looking forward to making another with prettier material. managed to do it over two days which is pretty good for me! thanks for the inspiration.

I love the pillow. I am working on some similar I have a pattern for but I like your pattern better. Patchwork pillows are so pretty. Love your choice of colors. Thanks so much for posting the tutorial.

Hi Allison! I want to thank you for this tutorial. It led me to make sprocket pillows for my grandchildren for Christmas. I just finished yesterday and blogged about the three pillows. You can see them here: http://www.ajoyfulcottage.com/2013/12/sprocket-pillows.html. I also included a link back to your tutorial. The pillows turned out so cute. Thanks, again! Nancy

This tutorial was by far the best and so easy.your pillows look amazing.I just had to make these the minute i saw the tutorial. I posted the pictures of my pillow on my blog. Heres the link http://deliciousanddiy.wordpress.com/2013/12/29/diy-sprocket-pillow/.Plus i mentioned you in it aswell because without your tutorial i doubt i could have made it. So Thankyou

I just made the larger version of this pillow as my first true sewing project! It turned out really well, and I intend on making a set to serve as decor. Thank you very much for this free pattern! I wish there was a way to share a picture of it with you.

Allison, these pillows are great! Thank you for the wonderful tutorial! Our followers love your book so i'm happy to show them more of your great works! Thank you!Kelli Marshallhttp://www.southernfabric.com

A few years after you posted this tutorial and it's still being made and loved! I'm not a fan of sewing circles – they scare me! – but I made the smaller version of this pillow tonight and, you're right, you can't make just one! I'm going to start another one tomorrow!

WOW this blog its wonderful! thank you for sharing such wonderful projects! I have so much fabric left over from Quilting that I need these ways to use them up and I can see I will end up with a lovely gift to give awayThank you again

Hi! Thanks for the tutorial, they are great cushions! I've started making an unmatched pair for my Mum, I'm terrible at finishing projects though, so I thought I'd say thank you now, rather than waiting until they are done! There's a couple of photos of my progress here :) http://mijipaints.blogspot.com.au/2014/06/monday.htmlThanks again!!

Wanted to acknowledge and say thanks. I have used your tutorial to make myself two sprocket cushions to match a quilt for my bed. All worked perfectly and I love them. Thank you so much. I will send you a picture

Thank you so much for this great tutorial— I have made 3 sprocket pillows already (large template) and they turned out perfectly. I can really recommend it. I used scraps from my children's old clothes. One only from denim and it's really nice. I will make many more, but some even a bit bigger , as floor pillows. Thanks again, also your quilts look super! Greetings Wera

I was so inspired by these "sprocket"(sp" pillows, I made one the 14" one this afternoon. I love it and I was surprised that it wasn't hard, going to gift it to a granddaughter and going to make her brother (grandson) one, also. Thank you for showing such detailed instructions.A picture of it is on my FB page

I found your sprocket pillows on Pinterest. Thank you so much for this wonderful tutorial. I made two pillows and in the process of making more. I’ve given them away and really need to think about making one for myself! I would like to post pictures on my blog and of course would link back to you for the tutorial because you’ve done such a marvelous job at this. I saw the pictures of the new baby. Congratulations.

Hello, I been wanting to make a few of these with all my scraps but the only part of the sprocket pillow how to that can be printed is the 2 wedges for the 2 different sizes. I attempted to print out the tutorial but I got everything except the tutorial. Which means I have to go to a different part of my home to read the tutorial then run to the other end to do that step. Is there anyway you can make the tutorial printable. It would be sooo much better. Thanks

I know it’s been a really long time since you posted this but I’m new to sewing and just found your tutorial. I wanted to say a great big thank you for such wonderful directions. They were super easy to follow and my pillow turned out stinkin’ cute! THANK YOU!!!

I loved how easy this pattern was to follow. I made the larger one for my great niece’s birthday (she just turned 2) but before I sewed the opening closed, I made a little strap handle out of some of the extra material and attached it where the opening is. Now she can pick up the pillow and drag it around the house and then use it to sit on to watch her favorite cartoons. I love that this can be made with just a few fat quarters, a great project for the beginner sewer!

I know this post is 6 years old but I wanted to say thank you for the pattern and tutorial. I found it months ago and made 6 of the large pillows out of my grandmothers clothes. She passed in December and I made them for my father and his sisters for Christmas. I just searched again for your tutorial so I could make another pillow for myself. Thank you for sharing.

I just found you pattern for the sprocket pillow today. I can remember everyone had pillows like this when I was a little girl. Lots of good memories. I want to make my granddaughter one by this pattern. Maybe some day she will look back and have good memories too. Thanks for sharing.

[…] the hole in the back…then ladder stitch the hole closed. 9. Add a button just like I did on the Sprocket Pillows (scroll to the bottom) and you’re done! Moosh it around good to get the stuffing around the […]

[…] And it’s been so wonderful having our daughter here on holidays. Lots of exploring our beautiful local area, as well as relaxing at home. Caroline always enjoys sewing when she visits and made this beautiful cushion- the pattern sourced from : http://cluckclucksew.com/2011/03/tutorial-sprocket-pillows.html. […]

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